Mawsillu (; ; ) was one of the most active Turkic tribes that operated during the

Aq Qoyunlu The Aq Qoyunlu or the White Sheep Turkomans (, ; ) was a culturally Persianate society, Persianate,Kaushik Roy, ''Military Transition in Early Modern Asia, 1400–1750'', (Bloomsbury, 2014), 38; "Post-Mongol Persia and Iraq were ruled by two trib ...

and Safavid empires. During the Safavid Empire, it was one of the Turkmen tribes that formed the Qizilbash tribes. The Mosul tribe, more commonly referred to as Turkmen in the Safavid Empire, originated from the region of

Mosul Mosul ( ; , , ; ; ; ) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. It is the second largest city in Iraq overall after the capital Baghdad. Situated on the banks of Tigris, the city encloses the ruins of the ...

History

According to Turkish historian Tufan Gündüz and John E. Woods, they one of the three biggest tribes dominating

along with Purnak and Bayandur tribes. Their main controlled areas were near Diyarbakr and

Erivan Yerevan ( , , ; ; sometimes spelled Erevan) is the capital and largest city of Armenia, as well as one of the world's List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerev ...

. They supported Hamza beg (a son of Qara Yuluq Osman) and Sheykh Hasan at earliest times but later changed their allegiance to

Uzun Hasan Uzun Hasan or Uzun Hassan (; February or March 1425 – January 6, 1478) was a ruler of the Turkoman (ethnonym), Turkoman Aq Qoyunlu state and is generally considered to be its strongest ruler. Hasan ruled between 1452 and 1478 and presided ove ...

after 1451 during Aq Qoyunlu succession crisis. They acquired the city of

Ruha Ruha (pronounced /ˈruːhə/) is a term with spiritual connotations found across various religious traditions. In Arabic, Ruh () signifies "spirit" or "soul" and is a fundamental concept in Islam, referring to the divine breath of life.Esposito, ...

in later in 1475 following the defeat of Uways (brother of

). After the conquests of

Ismail I Ismail I (; 17 July 1487 – 23 May 1524) was the founder and first shah of Safavid Iran, ruling from 1501 until his death in 1524. His reign is one of the most vital in the history of Iran, and the Safavid period is often considered the beginn ...

they were important players in the Qizilbash administrative structure with Ismail twice marrying into the tribe and his successor, Shah

Tahmasp I Tahmasp I ( or ; 22 February 1514 – 14 May 1576) was the second shah of Safavid Iran from 1524 until his death in 1576. He was the eldest son of Shah Ismail I and his principal consort, Tajlu Khanum. Tahmasp ascended the throne after the ...

being born to a Mawsillu mother. After the defeat of

's brother Üveys in 1475, the city of Urfa was given to the Mosul tribe. The Mosul tribe played an important role in the formation of the Safavid Empire. Shah Ismail married twice to women from the Mosul tribe, who held a significant place in the Qizilbash administrative system, and the mother of his successor, Tahmasp I, also belonged to this tribe. Furthermore, Tahmasp I's wife was from this tribe, and his two sons who succeeded him,

Ismail II Ismail II (; born Ismail Mirza; 31 May 1537 – 24 November 1577) was the third shah of Safavid Iran from 1576 to 1577. He was the second son of Tahmasp I with his principal consort, Sultanum Begum. On the orders of Tahmasp, Ismail spent twenty ...

and Muhammad Khudabanda, were born from her. Thus, the paternal grandmother of one of the most powerful rulers of the Safavids, Abbas I, also belonged to this tribe. After Tahmasp I's death, there was turmoil in the Safavid court, and during the struggle for the throne between two princes, Heydar Mirza and Ismail Mirza, Ismail's mother from the Mosul tribe supported Ismail Mirza. Additionally, during the reign of

Mohammad Khodabanda Mohammad Khodabanda (also spelled Khodabandeh; , born 1532; died 1595 or 1596) was the fourth Safavid dynasty, Safavid shah of Safavid Iran, Iran from 1578 until his overthrow in 1587 by his son Abbas I of Persia, Abbas I. Khodabanda had succeed ...

, the Mosul-Turkmen tribe rebelled and demanded punishment for the killers of Amir Khan Mosul-Turkmen, especially the

Shamlu The Shamlu tribe (; ), also known as the Shamli tribe, was one of the seven original and the most powerful Qizilbash tribes of Turkoman (ethnonym), Turcoman origin in Iran. List of the Khans of Shamlu *Ahmad Sultan Shamlu *Abdu Bey, Beg Shaml ...

and Ustajlu chiefs. Hemza Mirza, who effectively ruled the empire at that time, firmly rejected their demands. Initially supported by the Tekelis, the Mosulis initially sought the killing of the Ustajlu and Rumlu chiefs, especially Aliqoli Khan. After Hemza Mirza rejected their demands, they only wanted the exiling of certain individuals to distant places. Their demands were also rejected by the determined crown prince. However, the Mosulis and the Tekelis did not want to fight against him, instead proposing to use their forces against the Ottoman garrison in

Tabriz Tabriz (; ) is a city in the Central District (Tabriz County), Central District of Tabriz County, in the East Azerbaijan province, East Azerbaijan province of northwestern Iran. It serves as capital of the province, the county, and the distric ...

. But this time, representatives of the

Qajar The Guarded Domains of Iran, alternatively the Sublime State of Iran and commonly called Qajar Iran, Qajar Persia or the Qajar Empire, was the Iranian state under the rule of the Qajar dynasty, which was of Turkic origin,Cyrus Ghani. ''Iran an ...

, Afshar, and S tribes, who were with Hemza Mirza, expressed their dissatisfaction with the prince's stubborn behavior, claiming that some of his chiefs caused discord among the

Qizilbash Qizilbash or Kizilbash (Latin script: ) ; ; (modern Iranian reading: ); were a diverse array of mainly Turkoman "The Qizilbash, composed mainly of Turkman tribesmen, were the military force introduced by the conquering Safavis to the Irani ...

tribes to protect certain emirs. But

Hamza Mirza Hamza Mirza (; 4 September 1568 – 6 December 1586) was the Safavid crown prince of Iran during the reign of his father Mohammad Khodabanda (). His mother was Khayr al-Nisa Begum, a Mar'ashi princess from Mazandaran. Biography He was born on ...

personally attacked them and killed their leaders. In response, the Mosul-Turkmans and the Tekelis smuggled his 10-year-old brother, Tahmasb Mirza, out of the palace and proclaimed him shah in the capital,

Qazvin Qazvin (; ; ) is a city in the Central District (Qazvin County), Central District of Qazvin County, Qazvin province, Qazvin province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is the largest city in the provi ...

. Despite being outnumbered, Hamza Mirza defeated them in battle. The leaders of the uprising, Muhammad Khan Turkman and Musayib Khan Tekeli, were captured, while the Vali Khan perished during the battle.

Anvar Chingizoglu Anvar Chingizoglu Farajov (; 10 May 1962 – 10 July 2022) was an Azerbaijani historian, ethnologist and genealogist who mostly specialized in the history and genealogies of medieval Azerbaijan, Iran and the Ottoman Empire. Life Anvar Chingizog ...

writes that with the establishment of the Safavid Empire, the Mosulis, joining forces with the nomads, began to be called Turkmen, and they were included in the list of

tribes. However, there have been those who were not included in this list. He states that from the time of Ismail I, Baghdad was governed by these Mosulis or Turkmen nomads, and adds that Ismail I specifically addressed them in his poem: "As the Arab's settlement diminishes, his dwelling decreases, In Baghdad, whoever can, the Turkman seizes." There have also been branches of the Mosul tribe named Bektashi and Gülabil. Chingizoglu mentions that a large branch of the Mosul tribe settled in Mugan and Karabakh and later became known as Tekelis.

Famous members

# Begtash beg Mawsillu — founder of the clan. ## Osman (d. 1436) ## Muhammad (d. 1451) ## Amir I (d. 1473) — Commander in Chief of Aq Qoyunlu army, governor of Shiraz ### Hasan ### Gulabi I (d. 1491, killed by Suleyman beg Bijan) — Governor of Erzinjan #### Qayitmaz (d. 1507) #### Amir II (d. 1522) — Governor of Erzinjan, Guardian of

####* A daughter — married to Ruzagi family ####*#

Sharafkhan Bidlisi Sharaf al-Din Khan b. Shams al-Din b. Sharaf Beg Bedlisi (, ; ; 25 February 1543 – ) was a Kurdish Emir of Bitlis. He was also a historian, writer and poet. He wrote exclusively in Persian. Born in the Qara Rud village, in central Iran, bet ...

####* Marjumak (d. 1528) ####* Ma'sum (d. 1528) ####* Gulabi II (d. 1528) #### Ibrahim (d. 1528) — Governor of

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

, killed by Zulfaqar beg ####* Malik Qasim (d. 1529) ####** Muhammadi (foster brother of

) #### Ali beg (or Nokhud Sultan) ##### Zulfaqar (d. 1529) — Captured

from Ibrahim and submitted to

Ottomans Ottoman may refer to: * Osman I, historically known in English as "Ottoman I", founder of the Ottoman Empire * Osman II, historically known in English as "Ottoman II" * Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empir ...

, but was on the orders of

##### Ali — killed Zulfaqar on the orders of

#### Ismail ### Fulad ## Sufi Khalil (d. 1491, killed by Suleyman beg Bijan)— Governor of Shaki and Shiraz, regent of Baysonqor ### Jamshid (d. 1491) ### Shaykh Ali (d. 1492) ### Ismail (d. 1496) ### Yusuf ### Begtash ### Ya'qub ## Nur 'Ali ## Pir Umar ## Qutb al-Din ## Hamza beg ### Mihmad beg ####

Tajlu Khanum Tajlu Khanum () or Tajli Begum (), also known by her title of Shah-Begi Khanum (), was a Turkoman princess from the Mawsillu tribe and mother of Tahmasp I. Family While Italian writer Angiolello and Iranian historian Manuchihr Parsaʹdust ag ...

— Consort of

, mother of

## Bakr (d. 1491, killed by Suleyman beg Bijan) — Governor of Astarabad ### Isa beg{{Cite web, title=ESMĀʿIL II – Encyclopaedia Iranica, url=https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/esmail-02, access-date=2021-01-08, website=www.iranicaonline.org #### Musa beg — Governor of Azerbaijan ####

Sultanum Begum Sultanum Begum (; ( 1516 – 1593), also known as Kadam Ali Soltan Khanum, was the first wife and chief consort of the second Safavid king Tahmasp I. She was the mother of her husband's successor, Ismail II, and the mother of Mohammad Khodabanda, ...

— Consort of

, mother of

and

History

Famous members

See also

References